cc: file, Tony Hafen, Pauline Nelson via mail, Sara and Des Penny, Lloyd and Luana Warner, Diane Cluff, and Maxine Shirts.
"What a week. This could turn into a real epistle if I were to write about all of the things that happened this week. However, I'm stuffed up with allergies, and don't feel up to struggling through writing a lot of words. It is already Wednesday morning, and it might be Friday or Saturday before I finish writing what I end up writing, just because there are so many different things going on in my life right now. The most important thing to write about is meeting our new Grandson, Grant Matthew Nelson, and particpating in his blessing.
Well it is Sunday evening and I'm ready to continue writing what I started on Wednesday. When we got back from Utah Monday evening, I started sneezing and having an allergy attack, which has worn me out this week. Oh well! So what happened from the 10th to the 17th of March? Lots and lots.
Monday was my one day at AAPG this year. I went to the VGP (Visiting Geologist Program) breakfast meeting. They are collecting statistics from oil companies and contractors as to what is important in future employees. Ethics is the #2 soft skill. Technical skills was #1. Team Skills was #3. Summarization skills was #4. As I interpret the data, the most important thing someone looking for a job can do is to study hard in their discipline, and the second, third, and fourth most important thing for them to do is to go on a mission and learn ethics, team skills, and how to summarize complex multilevel meanings in an understandable way by thinking on their feet while being grilled by someone who disagrees with what they are saying. I think Paul included both points in Grant Matthew Nelson's blessing on Sunday. The VPG meeting was at the Hyatt Regency, and so I just parked there and road the bus over to the George Brown Convention Center.
John Masters, founder of Canadian Hunter (../0124.html), was on the same bus. I cornered him after we got off the bus, and we ended up spending about 5 hours together. He has started a new business that is contracted to Chuck Edward's company, CDX. He is interested in rocks, cores, cuttings, and other hard data. The registration line was over an hour long, and he talked to me all the time we were in line. It was a great discussion, because he is one of those geoscientists that thinks like I do. I took him to see Sam LeRoy's Brazil prospect. Then we went to the GeoServices booth and saw Christian Singfield's cuttings scanner. We spent a long time in the booth, and quite upset the guy from GeoServices for monopolizing his booth. Oh well! We went to find his old director of Research, who now lives in Salt Lake. Missed him. Ate lunch with Mike Forrest. Then went back to look for his friend. John spent a lot of time in the booth later in the week. Christian ended up driving his device to and had meetings with John and his technical team Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week. We should actually get down to a business agreement this next week.
I spent most of the rest of the show with Horace Snyder, and getting people lined up for Horace to meet. Tuesday I was getting a presentation together, and ended up coordinating meetings for Horace on the SEG floor. We flew to Las Vegas Tuesday evening. There was a big wreck on the Katy Freeway, we stopped to pick up Rachel's Senior photos, and there was another stopped truck at 610 and I-45. We were only at the airport 1/2 hour early. I dropped everyone off, went and parked the car, and got back just as they got the bags checked in. We got to Cedar City about 1:00 AM Houston time. At 8:00 AM Utah time, I was having a conference call between Horace Snyder and Scott Sechrist on my cell phone, setting up a meeting between them on the floor of the AAPG Convention in Houston about an hour later. Technology today really is phenominal. It has only been 35 years since I was spending this time of the year on a tractor in Cedar Valley, sure that I would never make it up town to spend time with any of the cute girls I was interested in back in 1968 (yes, back when Andrea was only 13). And now I can just barely imagine what experiences will accompany fullfillment of Grant Matthew Nelson's blessing over the next 35 years.
Wednesday, Matt and I borrowed a 22 from Gary, out at Gary's Texaco, and went Jack Rabbit hunting out by Rush Lake. It was cold, and a snow storm blew in while we out there. We saw 4 or 5 rabbits, and Matt shot off a box of 50 22 shells. To the right is one of his better poses. Then we met Mom and Rachel, Audrey and Heather, at the SUU library. Rachel likes the scenery (boys) at SUU. Rachel applied for a job for the summer. I visited with Ray Gardner about a Science Center a group in St. George is hoping to build down in Hurricane. It is a neat project. In the evening we had a nice family dinner at Sara and Des' house, and even got in a good game of Charades. Des promised not to act out `The Birth of a Nation,' and Sara stumped the guys with `Bippity, Boppity, Boo.' I acted out `The Matrix in 8 seconds, and Rachel guessed `Silence of the Lambs' in 6 seconds. Oh well! It was a lot of fun. I look forward to having these sessions with grandkids.
Thursday Andrea, Rachel, and I went to St. George, via La Verkin, after scraping 6 inches of snow off of the rental Caravan. We met the people who run a home there. Sara and I believe Mom would be happier here, than Porter's. We took Mom to lunch at Hunan's. Mom, it was sure good to see you. I think the last few months is the longest gap in a visit there has been since your stroke. Hopefully we will get the finances under control and get back on a more regular schedule. Aunt Luana, Uncle Lloyd, and Uncle Tony, I'm sorry we didn't make it by to see you on this visit. Next time. I dropped off Rachel and Andrea at Carole's place, and spent the next couple of hours talking about the Hurricane Science Center. I expect I will write more about this in the future. I then got a small strawberry-rasberry malt at Larson's (a known addiction). We met at Russell's new office. We were late getting back to Cedar for Audrey's debate for Student-Body Vice-President. Oh well! We got to see her sitting up front of all of the TV cameras in her neat suit. Quite an accomplishment just to run for an office like this.
Friday morning we were up early and left for Provo by 6:30. We arrived about 10:00. Andrea dropped me off and took Matt to Randy's and Rachel to Salt Lake. They went to Temple Square and saw Amy Williams, who just started to serve her mission there. They went around a corner and saw Marie, Amy's sister and Melanie's friend, and watched the crys and hugs. I walked over to the Eyring Science Center on BYU's Campus. On the way Scott Sechrist called, and we had a 15 minute conversation about all of the opportunities he has dug up for Horace Snyder and company. Then I went upstairs and met Dr. Scott Ritter. Big guy. Nice guy. He asked me what I found out when I asked my friends if I should apply at BYU. Told him my cousin Darrell Krueger, President of Winona State University told me I would not fit in. Then told him I see three problems:
He kindly discounted #3, and we talked about the others. I spent a half an hour reworking my `Impending Obsolesence of Maps' presentation, adding an image that shows mesoamerica turned with east to the top of the map, as per `A Forest of Kings' where it says East or the rising sun was always up on Mayan maps, and shows a definite narrow strip of land and a sea to the east and a sea to the west. No one commented about this image in my presentation. I went to lunch with 7 of the faculty. Most were younger than me. Mostly they were interested in talking about who won at some college basketball game. We had a reasonable discussion over lunch about my background. When we got back I gave my presentation. They had planned on about 20 attendees, based on the room. There were about 60 folks in the audience. The questions were good, and it was a fun group to talk to. Randy came. Dr. Ritter said goodby here, and I went with Randy over to his office. I have not heard anything from BYU since. Oh well! I did send them a note telling them thanks for letting me visit and give a presentation there. We spent Friday night with Paul, Kate, and Grant, while Rachel and Matt went out and played with their cousins.
Saturday I went up to Salt Lake and spent a couple of hours with Parker Gay. I sure hope we get funding to pursue his ideas. They are really exciting geologically sound projects. I guess time will tell. I got back to Paul and Kate's in time to take them and Andrea to two movies: `The Other Side of Heaven,' and `Single's Ward.' I highly recommend both. The first is the real experiencs of a current General Authority on his mission in Tonga in the 1950's. When the local girl dropped her skirt and he said, `This would never happen in Bosie,' it reminded me of an experience with a divorcee we baptized in Sawbridgeworth, outside of Harlow New Town on my mission. Of course, we didn't have hurricanes, and some of the other traumas of the mission in England. It rang true. The second is a farce. Imagine Steve Young advising a young man who is 25 and not married, by quoting Brigham Young as saying, `Any man who is not married by the time he is 25 years old is a menace to society!' It was Grant's first time out to the movies too. I think Kate was ready to be able to get out. It was a good evening for me. Paul has a member of his ward and of his home owner's association that is causing him some grief, and, Paul, I felt you were distracted. It reminded me of when I was Elder's Quorum President in Dallas, and a truck driver in my Quorum, named Mike Felan, decided to second guess everything I did. It was hard with small boys, a new job, going to school at night, and doing all of the work involved in an Elder's Quorum with over 150% annual turnover rate. I recall one particularly hard Sunday where our Bishop, whom I love to this day, and who was a Master Sargent in the Marines training kids to go to Viet Nam before moving to Dallas, where he `dressed down' the priesthood. Among other things he told us that if he ever found any of us had ever hit our wives he would personally hang us up by our scrotum. When he finished, he turned to me and said, `Elder Nelson, I now turn the time over to you as the Elder's Quorum President.' I gave announcements about the Stake Farm and dismissed the group for classes. I recall Mike Felan coming up to me and saying how inspired the Bishop's comments were, and realizing that all of the baloney he had been giving me was because his life was not right with the Lord. Paul, this kind of guy will float in and out of your life, and you just have to love them, and make sure they don't get to your family. They are the Bill Rollwitzes of the world. Satan is alive and well, and he works extra hard to attack those who are striving to follow the word.
Sunday we woke up to another 5 inches of snow on the gray Caravan (a free upgrade from a midsized car because they were out of midsized cars in Las Vegas). We went to church with Randy and family. It was good to see Russell Gray, Ed Gray's brother. He is in Randy's High Priest Quorum, and we worked together back in the late 1980's when he was at Texaco in Canada and I was at Landmark. It is always an ego boost to see folks who have lots of nice things to say about us. Then we went to Paul and Kate's, were we we were served a St. Patrick's day feast: green chicken fettuchine, asparagus, broccoli with green ranch dressing, lime jello, green apples, pears, celery, and kiwi with green fruit dip (marshmallow cream and cream cheese), and limeade, etc. The room was decorated with green streamers, and Kate's family from St. George and Boise were there. They didn't eat, and were serving us. It felt backwards. Kate was busy getting Grant ready. Paul had two rows scotch taped off at the front of the building, and the speakers mentioned they thought they were speaking at a funeral when they arrived. Randy and his family joined Kate's family and us. Steve Joseph drove down. Grant Matthew Nelson's blessing was a very special event. I took several photos afterwards, and to the left is my favorite for your perusual. The others will eventually be downloaded to www.walden3d.com/photos/Family/03_PaulKate.
As I listened to the promises Paul pronounced by the power of the priesthood, I could hear the promises pronounced upon each of you kids by myself or others. I recall having a lady who took dictation take down Roice's blessing. I recall recording Ben and Paul's blessings. Melanie, Sara, and Rob were all born in the covenant, and were given a priesthood blessing at birth. Hopefully I will find transcrips of all of these events when I clean out the boxes in the garage. Of course, I was not at Heather, Audrey, Rachel, nor Matt's blessings. I'm sure there was no less sincere intent with any of these blessings. And of course, all priesthood blessings are dependent upon our faith and our own freewill and choice. And I continue to hope all of the promises made at the time of your individual blessings come to pass in each of your lives, just as I hope the wonderful promises come to pass, as were mouthed by Paul in Grant Matthew Melson's blessing.
Grant, I'm going to include the following, which your Dad sent to me earlier this evening, in this Thoughtlet, so you can reflect on your wonderful heritage when you are older. This describes your Dad's recent experiences at the Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics:
And to me, these words nicely summarize what is really behind Grant Matthew Nelson's blessing."